George wrote on Apr 7, 2007 9:50 PM:Brigit Brett has gone some major problems. Ignorance stemming from sitting in her ivory tower up in Valley Center topping the list. The sixties are over baby. Do something that matters. How about advocating for Americans victimized by illegal aliens who don't care LESS about who they stomp as long as they get something from the good old US. And it's people like Brett who keep this sick flow of apathetic takers flooding into our country. Visit any ER room Brett and try and get some service. Be prepared to stand BEHIND a person who shouldn't be here to begin with.

Thanks Raoul wrote on Apr 7, 2007 10:21 PM:You're absolutely correct. The ommission by Ken Burns, a reknowned film maker, in leaving out the Mexican American contribution to the war was huge. I'm hoping he would be sensitive to this constructive criticism from some of the major Latino groups and edit his film for another verson to include the wonderful contributions of these men. Please see that those letters get to Mr. Burns and his staff so he has the opportunity to do what he does best: make great, historically accurate films. And please ignore the hate mongers and bigots in the world who don't understand the Mexican American's contribution to WWII.

The GOP’s FINEST wrote on Apr 7, 2007 11:23 PM:… I am reluctant to blame McCain’s age, especially because I am not far behind him, but I know mental capacity diminishes with age. We’ve all know elderly people with extraordinary mental acuity. I always think of that incredible old baseball radio announcer, Red Barber, with the most infallible recall of every game he ever broadcast, play by play. These are these exception, of course. If McCain were to be elected, he would be the oldest person ever to be sworn in as president. Fortunately, he won’t be elected - not after his disastrous stunt while visiting Iraq last week. We saw how badly his mental faculties and judgment of reality have faded. McCain has been touting Mr. Bush’s surge in Iraq, claiming for weeks it is making the streets of Baghdad safer. So, in an effort to prove his point and rehabilitate his image, he invited a bunch of photographers, including a team from 60Minutes, to take a stroll with him through a Baghdad market--a stroll in which he wore a bullet proof vest and had a military escort of an estimated 100 soldiers, 3 blackhawk helicopters, and 2 apache gunships. Despite the absurdity of this spectacle, McCain and his colleagues--particularly Republican Congressman Mike Pence -- proceeded to brag about how safe the streets of Baghdad are. Pence described the "friendly relaxed atmosphere" at the market and said it was "like a normal outdoor market in Indiana in the summertime." Tragically McCain is not even cognizant of the consequences of his actions. An Iraqi correspondent for the NY Times went back to that market the next day and interviewed some of the merchants. Several said they feared that the McCain stunt would cause retaliation on the market by insurgents. Sure enough, later that day, the market was attacked. According to the TIMES of London: 21 Shia market workers were ambushed, bound and shot dead north of the capital. The victims came from the Baghdad market visited the previous day by John McCain, who said that an American security plan in the capital was starting to show signs of progress. McCain, in order to prove his delusion, precipitated a terrible tragedy. We already had six years of that. It is a bit sad seeing such an icon destroy himself with humiliation. And McCain was once the GOP’s best.

To Raoul wrote on Apr 7, 2007 11:41 PM:You are correct. many Mexicans served in all our conflicts with honor and bravery. But the logic does not follow that based on this we should allow illegal immigration or amnesty to law breakers. The reverse descrimination that all mexicans deserve a free pass because some served well is also wrong. Surely, you can not believe that all who oppose anmesty or illegal immigration are bigots? We need more factual dialog like Raoul's. How about giving him a column NC Times

HILLARY QUALIFIED, but … wrote on Apr 7, 2007 11:47 PM:… but her campaign is beginning to stall already. In the first quarter of fund raising, she and Barack Obama both raised astronomical, record setting campaign funds of approximate the same amount. The significant difference, however, is that Obama received contributions from TWICE as many supporters as Hillary. This proves Obama has the great swell of Democratic grassroots support. Money is one thing, but it’s VOTES that count. Both candidates would make splendid presidents, but popular support at the grassroots is going to decide this race. I wish them well, but I believe we have others who are superior to these two

FYI web folks wrote on Apr 7, 2007 11:47 PM:the harry fagan letter has some messed up coding -- you might want to fix that

Ron wrote on Apr 7, 2007 11:48 PM:I'm with Gary Walker on this one. For far too long, illegals and their activists have been allowed to use this race card. It is not racist to believe that everyone should obey the laws of this country. And if you think it is, then you simply don't believe in obeying the law. You believe in making excuses.

sweet!! wrote on Apr 7, 2007 11:50 PM:Ivory towers in VC? Dude! I thought there wasn't anything out there! Hey maybe they have the "illegal-detector" George has that allows him to visit any ER and tell if a Mexican or Latino is illegal just by looking at them! Flippin sweet!

Ron wrote on Apr 7, 2007 11:54 PM:America does not practise imperialism, it's called commerce, and Thomas Jefferson said American commerce was worth the price of war to guarantee it. Secondly, Sorab Ghandhi, we don't have a king.

Ron wrote on Apr 7, 2007 11:57 PM:So, Bob Harvey agrees with a terrorist state. Why am I not surprised...

BILBRAE betrayed us wrote on Apr 8, 2007 12:00 AM:Anyone who voted for Bilbray must be feeling extremely foolish and betrayed right about now. Bilbray ran on a single issue – opposition to illegal immigration. But it turns out he’s not really opposed at all. In fact he wants to legalize illegal immigration! The Backdoor Amnesty approach Bilbray, Bush and their Democrat buddies propose on illegal immigration will solve the problem like selling heroin and crack over the counter at Ralph’s and Wal-Mart will solve America’s drug problem. There’s no problem if it’s legal, right? ”…but Bilbray said (the Bracero Program) created economic opportunities for poor Mexicans”. “Poor Mexicans”? Excuse me, Bilbray represents whom?

Ron wrote on Apr 8, 2007 12:03 AM:Rose Collings is obviously a plant by the CSU professors. No way, a "student" with a 94% tuition increase over the last 5 years is saying another 25% is ok with her, since this one goes to the teachers. & To answer your question: "Where is my tuition going, if not to the professors?" It's a matter of public record, my dear.

900 FBI files says she's not.. wrote on Apr 8, 2007 12:07 AM:Donald Whitman. She took a page from the ol' Richard Nixon playbook on "dealing with yur enemies." She never learned a thing as a staffer on the Watergate committee. Or did she?

Ron wrote on Apr 8, 2007 12:21 AM:I notice Kevin Keenan never addressed Ms.Yoon's SLAPP lawsuit, or "strategic lawsuits against public participation." In short, they sue you personally, thus tying you up with legal bills and injuctions until the case is settled. And when can we expect the ACLU to actually defend a Boy Scout troop, instead of suing them?

Giuseppe wrote on Apr 8, 2007 12:23 AM:Re: 'Mexicans who did serve' by Raoul Lowery Contreras of Del Mar Heights. Mr. Lowery's point is well taken. The entire project should be scrapped and Mr. Burns should rewrite his script from start to finish, highlighting the most significant contributions of every racial and ethnic group that participated in World War II: Arabic-Americans, Black Americans, Chinese-Americans, German-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, Irish- Americans, Italian-Americans, Japanese-Americans, Polish-Americans, Russian-Americans, and, last but not least, those highly decorated and most American of all Americans, the American Indians (Native Americans). The Arabic-Americans would include descendants of immigrants from any of the twenty Arabic-speaking countries who fought for the United States during World War II; likewise, Hispanic-Americans would include descendants of any of the twenty Spanish-speaking nations of the world who fought for the United States during World War II. This list is by no means all inclusive, but at least it would put Mr. Burns on the right track, and it would help to keep us divided, rather than united as Americans. Public schools throughout our nation have successfully instituted such a practice with Black History and Hispanic Heritage months. In fact, liberal institutions of higher learning have even set aside dormitories for minority groups to further the interests of neosegregationists, or as Ms. Brigid Brett might say, neoapartheidists. Does Mr. Lowery know this? Do the readers of this newspaper know this? Any argument?

Giuseppe wrote on Apr 8, 2007 1:05 AM:Re: ‘ACLU’ by Kevin Keenan. Spoken like a consummate rhetorician, my good sir. I doubt that this newspaper or Mr. Trageser ever felt threatened with litigation for expressing an unflattering editorial opinion of the ACLU, after all, if one cannot trust that august group of barristers to protect one’s right to freedom of expression, whom can one trust? That is, unless one happens to be a Christian. The cross still stands atop the Mount Soledad Memorial, but it has cost the Christian community that put it there dearly. The atheist who was so offended by that cross – despite the fact that it held no meaning for him – has expired, but the ACLU still wants to have it removed. It is indeed comforting to know that the ACLU is adamant about protecting our First Amendment rights by suing public schools and government offices for redress of perceived grievances. Granted, they may not be as aggressive about the Second Amendment, and their pro bono fees may seem extravagant to the unlettered and unwashed masses, but the services rendered are more than worth their cost to the taxpayers. So, the next time you receive a mailer from the ACLU requesting a donation, please give, and give generously. You’ll be glad you did. That is, unless you should happen to be a Christian. Have a Blessed and Holy Easter.

Giuseppe wrote on Apr 8, 2007 1:32 AM:Re: ‘Liberal education means freedom of thought’ by Clay Northcote of Carlsbad. Mr. Northcote writes an interesting letter. His opinion of Mr. Gipner aside, philosophically his argument is unassailable; however, it also highlights the cognizance that is characteristic of some professors, who consider themselves to be conservative and President Bush to be a Right Wing zealot.

Leatherneck wrote on Apr 8, 2007 1:52 AM:Re: ‘We speak for veterans’ by Gilbert Field of San Diego. Mr. Field, I respect your right to voice your opinion of the war in Iraq; however, I too am a veteran and I assure you that you do not speak for me. I consider what you and your group are doing a breach of faith with Americans who are putting their lives on the line as we speak. If all antiwar protesters really wanted to make their point without diminishing our troops’ morale, they would write to their elected representatives and make their views known quietly, but effectively. Rather than do that, you want to make a public spectacle of yourselves, embarrass President Bush and bring down our troops’ morale. In my book, that puts you right up there with Senator John Kerry of the People’s Democratic Republic of Massachusetts.

To Bernie Bushy wrote on Apr 8, 2007 3:48 AM:The barbs at Bush are from his own actions. He's a proven liar. Reap what you sow, and I don't think he'll have any answering to do at the Pearly Gates, Heaven protects that border and only lets in the good.

Stealth Blogger wrote on Apr 8, 2007 4:33 AM:Easter Sunday commentaries from the editor have been a staple of U.S. newspapers for generations. When will the NCT address this omission?

WHY DID WE DO THIS? wrote on Apr 8, 2007 6:40 AM:Yesterday a writer pointed out the United States killed over 4.7 million people in the Viet Nam War. This is really hard to comprehend. How could the United States be responsible for the death of so many people? The entire population of San Diego County is less than 3 million people. Why did we do this? What did we win? The world speaks so often of the genocide of the Jews during World War II, but we hear so little about he genocide of the Vietnamese and Laotians at the hand of our own country. Are we to forget these terrible events and pretend they never happened? Have we become a nation of holocaust deniers? Yesterday a blogger tried to trivialize the Vietnam genocide by claiming that the Viet Cong and Communists killed more people than we did, so therefore that makes it all right. Has the criteria for measuring the moral greatness of our nation become so distorted? This trivialization of the Vietnam genocide is itself a measure of how war degenerates and poisons the national mind. I wonder why we pretend to be a Christian nation.

Oh Gary wrote on Apr 8, 2007 6:59 AM:You are joke! Do you really think that the behavior of the anti-immigrant group was appropriate in that setting. The meetings I attended were out of order and not one person in authority attempted to take control of the situation. Jeers, Cheers, and Sneers are not appropriate during any type of official meeting. Perhaps you and your ilk can not distigush between what is acceptable in official City meetings and what is you can get away with on street corners. Please their is no defense for the bullies that attended that meeting with the intent to disrupt and disrespect those in attendance.

Confused about despots.... wrote on Apr 8, 2007 8:14 AM:Despotism is a form of government by a single authority, either an individual or tightly knit group, which rules with absolute political power. a Despot wields all the power and authority, and everyone else is considered his slave. Yep, that was Hussein, Gene Gerow. And how exactly do you logically get to Bush and Blair are despots???

Giuseppi wrote on Apr 8, 2007 8:31 AM:I hope you got my point in my rather lengthy post of 12:23 AM. America was founded as a white European society. This nation was built by white European settlers, and they are the ones responsible for the great culture and traditions of America. All the others riff-raff want to move in now and claim credit for our ingenuity and our valor. These new immigrants dilute our cultural purity.

GFN wrote on Apr 8, 2007 8:46 AM:Bernie Schroer, I don't consider GWB a traitor or a liar, but I do consider him to be incredibly incompetent. One only needs to remember the President's "Mission Accomplished" speech aboard ship, one month after the US armed forces "Shocked and Awed" Iraq and the Middle East. We are paying a terrible price with this man as president. Time will show.

GFN wrote on Apr 8, 2007 8:52 AM:Sorab Ghandhi, thank you for such enlightenment. Never has our hubris, arrogance, or stupidity been more clearly or concisely displayed. Talk about History repeating itself to the ignorant...GWB and us.

GFN wrote on Apr 8, 2007 8:56 AM:To GOP's finest, 11:23pm. Great points about a pathetic political stunt. This is sad in a lot of ways.

In the scope of history... wrote on Apr 8, 2007 9:05 AM:I've always thought of the comparison of George W. Bush and FDR. Both came into office after an economic downturn, and both enacted laws to help the nation recover. Both were big government types. FDR's Ne Deal legacy is reknown, but I think many have forgotten the Bush and Ted Kennedy were the two men pushing for No Child Left Behind. Bush had also promised and delivered a new Medicare drug program for seniors, and it became the biggest entitlement expansion since LBJ. Both were confronted with wars, the deaths of nearly 3,000 Americans each, and terrorist attacks on American soil. Both attacked by one country, yet spoke of an "axis of evil", initiated war against one, eventually opening the war up on two-fronts. Both faced large opposition to fight a country which had not warred with us. Both faced with a downsized military, and an under-equipped Army. Both accused of violating civil rights, FDR placing Japanese-Americans into internment camps, George Bush and wire-tapping. FDR tried, and had executed Nazi's who came ashore in Florida, and little is known of the thousands of german troops brought to America and held without trial until after the war, versus Bush and detainees in Gitmo. These are just some of the similarites, between them. And there are differences, FDR was able to rally a nation with fireside chats, his version of the news of the war and other issues. Whereas Bush is faced with a 24 hour news cycle and cameras on the battlefields. FDR spoke of a nation sacrificing (taxes) for war effort, Bush does not believe this. Two men, equally faced very similar issues, reacted roughly the same. Some will disagree with me, but I don't think you can after some honest research. Imperfect men, each faced great challenges, with imperfect results. Each had Congresses that fought them, and sought to undermine them. Each faced the name calling of "King, Dictator, and Despot." Each faced world opinion in regards to American actions. Each faced evil men, who sought to overtake and brutalize citizens of the world. I believe Bush has the harder road here, with the news cycle being what it is, FDR had it easy with nearly a 2-3 week delay in battlefield reports. Had the American public known of the 6,000 Americans killed on D-Day in a 24 hour news cycle, who knows? We might have just given up then too.

Nick wrote on Apr 8, 2007 9:13 AM:Stealth Blogger just keeps planting posts around the times wondering about the religious significance of Easter. Come out and say what you mean. The NC Times will address your question the same time they take the stance of the MAJORITY of Americans on ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION. I wonder how many of those devout Catholics from south of the border are sneaking accross our borders instead of being in Church like good Catholics should?

GFN wrote on Apr 8, 2007 9:20 AM:Ron, Jefferson was referring to stopping the attacks of the Barbary pirates, a Muslim enemy that attacked European and American ships with impunity in the Mediterranean Sea. Protecting commerce is worth the price; the removal of the Taliban in Afghanistan was seen by almost every country as a reasonable response to the 9/11 attacks...going into Iraq and creating the quagmire we now have was supported by no one, save the countries we bought to support. Ghandhi's quotation better describes what we have done then that of Thomas Jefferson, one of our most admirable presidents.

GFN wrote on Apr 8, 2007 9:20 AM:Ron, I do agree with you and Gary Walker for the reasons you mentioned.

Jefferson wrote on Apr 8, 2007 9:27 AM:So far, we've had a couple of bloggers with references to Madison's strong support of the separation of powers in war. And a couple with Jefferson's feelings about pirates' interference with commerce being a valid reason for war with any nations that were in cahoots with them. The pirate example is especially pertinent to the modern situation. But more broadly, the Jeffersonian sentiment has been taken as something like a motto for our use of the military, considering how many nations we have bases in, how much of the world's sea and air we patrol. And, yes, it's mostly about commerce, and a pre-emptive display of what's in store for anyone that threatens it. Thank God other countries don't have similar philosophies...can you imagine? But one interesting development: in the era of globalization and the internationalization of big business, who, I wonder, does that military actually work for and protect? For example, when Halliburton moves to Dubai, are they still an American company?

GFN wrote on Apr 8, 2007 9:33 AM:Giuseppe, thank you for exposing Mr. Lowery; you will receive no argument from me. Mr. Lowery has reached the point where we all realize he is just crying wolf about any Hispanic topic, whether it makes any sense or not. He is educated and writes very well, but he is a one-way train, a one-trick pony, whose tortured logic now hurts the very people he is trying to help.

GFN wrote on Apr 8, 2007 9:45 AM:I'm torn on the subject of global warming. Yes, the earth is warming, but is it natural or caused by man, or a combination of both. However, Joan Sufferdini, makes valid points: "We do not want to accept limits on our behavior, but if we don't take small steps now, we will be forced to make much more unpleasant changes later." And, "Yet our dependence on foreign oil is affecting our security, and the Japanese auto companies are beating us because they already make what people want." Another, "...more money should be spent on famine, disease and safe drinking water in the Third World. I would add to that list prevention of deforestation and prevention of collapsing fisheries. But if we don't deal with global warming, none of those problems will be solvable." Dealing with global warming, just in case some of it may be man-caused. Small steps are a good start.

Israel rules wrote on Apr 8, 2007 9:56 AM:Typical that people like Jack Strumpf would like to justify Israel attacking anyone (Iran) in the Middle East that hates them. Too bad everyone in the Middle East already hates Israel by now. And they have good reasons, considering the land stealing and war and death Israel seems to think is part of their own "heritage". Peace takes two and Israel has no interest whatsoever these days in peace of any kind. And it seems they own American foreign policy these days. Happy Easter.

Alf wrote on Apr 8, 2007 9:56 AM:Happy Easter to all, may you have a fine day. "Giuseppe", in your 12:23am post you, thankfully, acknowledged the American Indians for their contribution. One of the most important things that the American Indians did was to provide their language as code. No enemy cryptographers could break it. My devilled eggs are great. Unabashedly, Alf.

to Giuseppe wrote on Apr 8, 2007 9:56 AM:You raise a lot of interesting points. What a strange history we have with race and ethnicity (I shouldn't say "we": find a country that doesn't?). But there is some irony to the idea of the neosegregationist. For almost our whole history, non-white (or non-white-enough, or non-WASP) ethnic groups were treated terribly by most "Americans". And of course African-Americans were literally and legally segregated. Then, in a brief time of terrible strife and heroic action, legal segregation ended. Ethnic people and people of color stood up and had pride and an opinion about themselves. And -- lo and behold -- the same conservatives that favored their oppression now came forward and accused them of being seperatists, as though the mainstream, conservative WASP has for all time been cheering for integration, and now complains: why can't we just all hug and sing kumbaya, my brothers and sisters?! Please, I'm getting dizzy!

Floyd wrote on Apr 8, 2007 10:51 AM:The "twinkies vs peeps" question of the day is easier to answer if you have some information. Use the words "twinkie project" in the Google search engine and click on "I'm Feeling Lucky" to get all the information you need about twinkies.

Make your own documentary wrote on Apr 8, 2007 11:40 AM:Why sacrifice Ken Burns on the altar of political correctness while making bogus claims about his "taxpayer" funded researchers? If you don't like his documentary then make your own. It's so much easier (and reprehensible) to suggest, as did Giuseppe, scrapping a project because it's not PC enough for your taste.

To 'Make your own' at 11:40 A.M. wrote on Apr 8, 2007 11:58 AM:You seem to have missed the point of Giuseppe's post entirely: it was blatant satire.

To Ron wrote on Apr 8, 2007 12:07 PM:Ron, is that you? Your blogs seem a wee bit brief today. Please bring back the Ron of old, the more verbose, the better. It makes the libs go bonkers. They have trouble assimilating anything more than the first couple of sentences.

to Giuseppe wrote on Apr 8, 2007 1:25 PM:My great-grandfather and grandfather would argue that this country was founded by white NORTHERN europeans. And that it's freedoms and politics are a result of that. To that end they fought to keep southern european catholics out of this country. They said very much the same things about italians as you are saying about mexicans. If it were up to them and the millions of Americans who felt the same way at the turn of the last century, you would not be here.

to scope of history wrote on Apr 8, 2007 1:31 PM:I would say the main difference between FDR and Bush would be their experience prior to coming to the presidency. I don't think anyone would argue that FDR had a sharper more questioning intelligence. Finally FDR surrounded himself with the best and the brightest. Bush surrounds himself with Bushies, people selected for their loyalty more than their competence. The result: FDR had a successful presidency, Bush I think will be viewed as one of the worst.

to easter christians wrote on Apr 8, 2007 1:39 PM:I'm with you 100% on this one. This holiday should be called easter, not any other name. By the way, did you know that easter is the name of a pagan goddess? I guess that is fitting since this is mainly a pagan fertility holiday. I for one plan on celebrating easter by being as fertile as possible.

To GOP’S finest . wrote on Apr 8, 2007 3:16 PM:. Yeah, McCain staged a disastrous stunt in that Baghdad market. The military provided him a full company of Marines and all those blackhawk helicopter gunships to stage a stunt to prove the SURGE is working. Baghdad is now safe. McCain is almost as good as Dubya at staging fake photo ops. You can see the stunt on 60Minutes tonight. This will McCain’s equivalent of Bush’s Mission Accomplished on May 1, 2003. Proves McCain is Bush’s heir apparent.

NO SURPRISE HERE.. wrote on Apr 8, 2007 3:33 PM: .. So Bilbray lied to get elected??? Shocking revelation! Only a dupe would be surprised. When it comes to cheap immigrant labor, Bilbray comes down on the side of greedy corporations who are willing to exploit labor, whether legal or not. Now you know the REAL Bilbray.

To ‘to Giuseppe’ at 1:25 P.M. wrote on Apr 8, 2007 5:02 PM:I accept that the British colonists were Northern, as opposed to Western or Southern Europeans, and there is no doubt that our legal system sprang from British law; after all, the Founding Fathers were British citizens, weren’t they? Baltimore was a haven for Catholics, elsewhere they were treated horribly, whether they were Irish or Italian. Thus far, we have no disagreement. Apparently you, as well as others, read the post of ‘Giuseppi’ at 8:31 AM and thought it to be mine. That was not my doing, but the work of a demented impostor who lacked the courage to express his disagreement candidly and resorted to posting a diatribe in my name. If you look closely, you will note that the impostor is not Italian, as he misspelled my name. Perhaps he will come forth and identify himself as the race-baiter and the intellectual coward that he truly is. My post was meant to point out the absurdity of remaking a film about World War II solely for the purpose of highlighting the contributions of Americans of Mexican descent. Our nation is the world’s melting pot, and heroes of every ethnic group have distinguished themselves doing battle in our nation’s wars, but they all fought as Americans. It is to our detriment that there are those among us who fail to apprehend the basic concept of ‘E Pluribus Unum’ unto this day.

To the poster of 1:39 P.M. wrote on Apr 8, 2007 5:19 PM:Your post is as transparent as your gray matter. The pagan goddess for whom this day was named was Eostre, not Easter. The imposition of one holiday over another has been practiced by conquerors throughout the history of humankind, regardless of the conqueror’s belief system. Do enjoy yourself as you indulge in the intemperate pursuit of pleasure today. After all, what could be more important than the here and now?

Wrong-way Trageser wrote on Apr 8, 2007 5:39 PM:Nice correction on the front of today's Perspective about last week's silly Trageser column about the ACLU. Seems he made 2 factual goofups and made that silly challenge to the ACLU to defend Schwilk for migrant bashing. Next time he writes a column, maybe Trageser could check his facts out in the first place instead of issuing retractions the next week.

To ‘to Giuseppe’ at 9:56 A.M. wrote on Apr 8, 2007 5:56 PM:We can continue to blame generations past for all eternity, or we can put that behind us and move forward. It’s an idea whose time has come. One might think of it as progress. I harbor no guilt over the sins of my forefathers. Black Americans may have English and Irish surnames, or they may have taken Arabic names, but I do not know of any with Italian surnames. Greeks, Romans and Egyptians had slaves. The Japanese enslaved Koreans during World War II. Today the country with the greatest number of slaves is India. In Sudan, Arab rulers from the northern part of the country have enslaved black Christians from the southern region, but their persecution of black Muslims in Darfur gets all of the press coverage. In the United States, there are black billionaires whose ancestors were slaves. No other nation on earth can boast so much progress in so short a time. God Bless the U.S.A.!

Alf wrote on Apr 8, 2007 6:11 PM:Well, "To ‘to Giuseppe’", directly translated "E Pluribus Unum" is "Of Many One". It is a common misperception that since it is on our money, it therefore, means "One of Many" referring to the money itself. But either way, it refers to the "melting pot", as in either "we are one people from many different peoples" or "from the many peoples we have become One People". As has been pointed out, the placement of descriptors says much about the importance a person places on their identity; calling yourself a Mexican-American implies that your allegiance is to Mexico first and America second. On the other hand calling yourself an American of Mexican descent does seem a bit awkward. What has been the strength of the United States is having society as a whole benefit from the best aspects of all our parts, making us synergistic - the effect of the whole is greater than the sum of the combined effects of the component parts. I wax philosophic. Still an unabashed Libertarian, Alf.

to Giuseppe wrote on Apr 8, 2007 7:16 PM:My apologies. I missed that completely. I hope you realize that I didn't agree with my grandfathers. In fact their overt racism made me rebel against them. I just remember how thoroughly they hated southern europeans because of their customs and, of course, the catholic thing. That's one reason I am such a champion of the public school system. As I went to school with catholics I learned they were just like us protestants and any vestage of racism disappeared. By the way, I'm with you 'E Pluibus Unum' forever.

to to g 5:02 wrote on Apr 8, 2007 8:38 PM:One out of many is ambiguous. Many ask: why is the "one" always the WASP one? Or is it? In other words, many feel that "becoming American" often means "being like 'good' white Protestant Americans". An interesting question for each of us to soul search: is this for the best? Opposition to this has been steady, on the margins, a little subversive. Black and ethnic music. Dance. Improvisation. Jive. Always looking in from the window, yet also hidden, the demon just outside "our" view, leaking in through the cracks. For some, the enemy within; for others, hope and joy and a fuller idea of happiness.

To ‘to to’ poster on April 8th at 8:38 P.M. wrote on Apr 9, 2007 12:12 PM:I have done all the soul searching I need to do. I don’t own a business and I have never kept anyone from getting ahead in life. When I see Americans like Bill Cosby and Oprah Winfrey who defy stereotyping and epitomize positive role models for today’s youth, or I look at the members of the Congressional Black Caucus or consider how many major cities have or have had black mayors, I know that life is good for those who are willing to put forth the effort to realize their life’s ambitions. Others who wish to retain their cultural identity can do extremely well also, as evidenced by the huge number of professional athletes, singers, actors and actresses whose ancestors were slaves until 1865. They have more white fans than black fans. It is only those who polish a well worn bench of excuses, insisting all the while that life isn’t fair and that they must resort to criminal behavior to make it in ‘the white man’s world’ who are doomed to failure.

Jerry wrote on Apr 9, 2007 2:53 PM:Bernie, it is not a question of us Bush bashing...it is a question of his competitence...or lack there of. There is nothing that he has succeeded in in his entire life, yet we turned over the most powerful position in the world to a pea brained person. If he had picked competitant people, Katrina would not be laid on his doorstep. If he knew more about the mid east, he would not have kicked this Islamic sleeping dog. If he were a man of honor, he would have come out quickly to condemn those who outed a CIA agent. If he were a real Christian, he would be concerned with the least of us, instead of the top 1%. If he were honorable, he would not be threatening to veto a bill which give medicare bargaining power. If he were smart, he would recognize that we MUST talk with out enemies. He is just a LEMON. In fact, he is probably a war criminal. I agree with you. We should be praying for him. Because...when he gets to the gates of heaven, they are going to be kicking his tail to that place below a speed faster than light.

Singer to Jerry wrote on Apr 9, 2007 8:48 PM:Earth to wherever you are! First of all, please, oh please learn to spell! It might give you an ounce of credibility! Then, when you suggest that we talk with our enemies you MUST realize that, in every peace talk they (the Muslims) have entered into with others, they have made promise after promise, each and every one to be broken summarily. How do you talk with an enemy like that? Please come down from out of the clouds ...

To ‘Jerry’ on April 9th at 2:53 P.M. wrote on Apr 9, 2007 10:35 PM:After reading your post, I was amazed that such an erudite person had not yet learned to spell ‘competence’ and ‘competitive,’ or mastered subject and verb agreement, as manifested in the phrase ‘a bill which give[s] Medicare bargaining power.’ I was also impressed with your assertions about President Bush. They were fresh, original, and concise. I have never seen anybody say so little with so few words. If ever parrots could read your post, they would be insanely jealous. Regards, Lugatz.

Fringe Bernie wrote on Apr 20, 2007 11:12 AM:Aparently Bernie is part of the fringe that is completely delusional about GW. Come on man, this guy isn't working hard at anything and is a total and utter embarrassment to the Office, the Country and all of us as Citizens. We should start hauling you nut jobs before congress to explain yourselves the way they did commies back in the day... just kidding, you're basically harmless now that the rest of the country sees this guy for the incompetent embarrassment that he is.